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The Irish Sun
14-05-2025
- Politics
- The Irish Sun
Ireland's forgotten ‘Hell on Earth' Alcatraz WON'T reopen despite Trump's US slammer plot for ‘most ruthless offenders'
A CORK politician has ruled out Ireland's Alcatraz reopening as a prison following Donald Trump's bid to revive the iconic US tourist attraction. Last week, the Advertisement 4 Spike Island in Cork was once the world's largest jail housing over 2,300 inmates during the famine Credit: Alamy 4 Cork Lord Mayor Councillor Kieran McCarthy said it will not reopen He said the country's 'most ruthless and violent offenders' will be housed in the long-shuttered slammer just off San Francisco, Spike Island in Known as 'Hell on Earth', like Alcatraz, it has become an award-winning attraction. Local historian and Cork Lord Mayor Councillor Kieran McCarthy said there was no chance the Irish Advertisement READ MORE IN IRISH NEWS He said millions have been poured into transforming the island and Fort Mitchel into a place visited by thousands of visitors annually. He told the Irish Sun: 'Spike Island is part of a historical trail in Cork Harbour which also includes Fort Camden and Fort Meagher. 'It has been closed as a prison for decades and it now plays an important part in the He also says he does not believe Advertisement Most read in the Irish Sun Exclusive Latest Cllr McCarthy thinks it is an impossible ask, as Alcatraz had been crumbling before it was decommissioned and is now a He said: 'My gut is that this is a political plot by the President aimed at getting at the Democratic Governor of California, Gavin Newsom, who has been somewhat of a thorn in his side. 'STIRRING THE POT' 'San Francisco is twinned with Cork City and there are good relationships between the two cities. 'I do think Trump is stirring the pot. His plan would cost more than millions and it is something people wouldn't want for the Rock.' Advertisement Spike Island is famously known as Ireland's Alcatraz. It was the first of four An enormous fortress arrived in 1804, its 24-acre footprint so large it could fit Built to defend an empire and repel an all-conquering Napoleon, it was the fort's conversion to a prison in 1847 that drew the eyes of the world and fostered its dark reputation. Advertisement CONDITIONS DETERIORATING The explosion in crime during the Great Hunger led the prison population to swell to more than 2,300, making it the largest formal prison yet seen in Ireland or With such severe overcrowding, conditions quickly deteriorated. More than 1,000 convicts died in the first seven years of operation, each now buried in an unmarked mass grave to the island's east in a forgotten penal tragedy. No women were held on the island but men and boys as young as 12. Advertisement An especially converted 'children's prison' held up to 100 boys in a former ammunition storehouse, the youngsters sleeping in hammocks suspended from chains in the roof. It reopened in 1921, holding more than 1,200 republican prisoners as the Irish War of Independence raged. NOTORIOUS INMATE The A final prison operated from 1985 to 2004, cementing the island's legendary status in the penal system. Advertisement Its most notorious inmate was Martin 'The General' Cahill, who was sent out of harm's way when serving time for breaching the peace. Cork County Council became the owners and, along with tourism interests, developed it into a modern tourism facility with a 100 seater cafe, two gift shops, and interactive units which allow visitors to go back in time and explore the long history of the island. 4 Donald Trump plans to reopen Alcatraz Credit: AP:Associated Press 4 Martin 'The General' Cahill was an inmate in the jail Credit: Getty Images - Getty Advertisement
The Journal
25-04-2025
- General
- The Journal
Rare 200-year-old mud house in Co Clare to be removed for 'road safety' reasons, angering locals
A RARE MUD house that has stood in Co Clare for almost 200 years is set to be removed in order to facilitate improvements to a nearby road, according to Clare County Council. Citing 'road safety' reasons, the Council said that the house in Tullaroe, near Querrin, is being surveyed ahead of planned deconstruction. The news has been met with dismay by some locals, who have shared their frustration on the Council's Facebook page. The mud and stone house is one of the last of its kind in Ireland and was inhabited from 1827 until its former owner Johnnie McNamara died in 1981 at the age of 95. In a post on its website , the Council said that in 1901 the house was home to 11 people. The Council's announcement quoted historian Paddy Waldron, who said: 'I have brought many tour groups here over the years, including a large international group during the 2013 National Famine Commemoration.' Advertisement 'Many participants were intrigued to see before their own eyes how the many mud houses left abandoned at the end of the Great Hunger had sunk back into the landscape, leaving no trace,' he said. Archaeologist Dave Pollock said, 'We do not know of many of these mud houses still standing, but there could be a handful still lived in that look like the stone cottage next door.' Under the Facebook post announcing the deconstruction of the house, local residents expressed frustration at the move, with many asking why the road could not be built around it. 'Sick of the destruction of our history,' one commenter said. 'Why is this not a protected structure?' asked another. An 'evening of reminiscing' has been organised and will take place on Thursday, 8 May at 8pm at Myles Creek, O'Curry Street, Kilkee. The Council said: 'All are welcome, but anyone with memories of the McNamara family is especially encouraged to attend.' Readers like you are keeping these stories free for everyone... A mix of advertising and supporting contributions helps keep paywalls away from valuable information like this article. Over 5,000 readers like you have already stepped up and support us with a monthly payment or a once-off donation. Learn More Support The Journal
Washington Post
03-03-2025
- Climate
- Washington Post
Can we invent ourselves out of climate change? Ben Franklin thought so.
Joyce E. Chaplin is the James Duncan Phillips professor of early American history at Harvard University and author of the forthcoming book 'The Franklin Stove: An Unintended American Revolution,' from which this piece is adapted. The winter of 1740-1741 was miserable. Boston Harbor froze over. So did the Venice Lagoon. Crops died and famine reigned. Up to a fifth of Ireland's population might have died, a greater toll than for the 19th-century famine called the Great Hunger.
